Touro Governing Board
Meet the Touro Governing Board
Jill Israel, Chair
Jill Israel retired in 2016 from Entergy Corporation as Senior VP of Shared Services. Previous senior leadership roles included Chief Information Officer, VP of Financial Processes, and VP of Internal Audit. Additionally, Ms. Israel held key roles in several merger & acquisition efforts and had responsibility following Katrina for much of the business continuity efforts following Entergy's relocation from its downtown New Orleans corporate offices. Ms. Israel graduated from Cornell University with a BA in Economics and received her MBA degree from Tulane University. She is currently the Treasurer of Touro Synagogue and chairs the Touro Synagogue Foundation Investment Advisory Committee. Ms. Israel serves on the board of the Jewish Endowment Foundation and the advisory board of the South Central Region of the Anti-Defamation League. A native of New Jersey, Ms. Israel has lived in New Orleans since 1981.
Kim Boyle, Vice Chair
Kim M. Boyle is a partner in the Employment Law Group at Phelps Dunbar LLP. Ms. Boyle has practiced in all areas of commercial litigation, as well as employment litigation, tort litigation, and general litigation. She is a former Judge Pro Tempore of Division "I" of Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans, as well as a former Assistant Professor of Law at Loyola University School of Law. Kim is a New Orleans native. She graduated from Princeton University before attending University of Virginia School of Law and returning to New Orleans in 1987.
N. Knight Worley, M.D., Past Chair
Dr. Newland Knight Worley, an otolaryngologist in private practice, has served as an active participant in numerous hospital committees since joining Touro’s medical staff in 1994. Dr. Worley has been a member of Touro’s Medical Staff Executive Committee since 1998 and was a past Vice President from 2002 – 2006 and President from 2006 – 2008. A member of the Touro Infirmary Board of Governors since 2006, Dr. Worley also holds positions on the Governing Boards of the Touro Infirmary Foundation and the Orleans Parish Medical Society. He is a graduate of the Tulane University School of Medicine and serves as an assistant clinical professor with the Department of Otolaryngology/Head & Neck Surgery.
Greg Feirn, President and Chief Executive Officer of LCMC Health
Mr. Feirn currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of LCMC Health, the parent company which manages Children's Hospital, Touro Infirmary, and the Interim L.S.U. Hospital. He has over 20 years of healthcare experience, including 15 years with Children's Hospital and five years with a "Big 4" accounting firm, Deloitte & Touche, LLP. His professional experience includes financial accounting, non-profit tax accounting, Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement strategy, investment portfolio management and operations, and healthcare-related academic research. He completed the MBA program at Tulane University's A.B. Freeman School of Business with an emphasis in finance, graduating with honors, and has his CPA accreditation. In his role as CEO for LCMC, he is responsible for management coordination of the LCMC Board of Trustees and for oversight and analysis of the System’s operations and investment portfolio.
Ruth Kullman LCMC Health Board Chair
Ruth Kullman is the owner of Kullman Consulting which specializes in non-profit consulting and political fundraising. She received her B.A. and M.S.W. from Tulane University. Additional community involvement includes serving as past President of Touro Synagogue, Planned Parenthood of Louisiana, and New Orleans Outreach. She currently serves on the Boards of the Institute of Mental Hygiene and New Orleans College Prep Charter School.
Board Members
Mara Baumgarten Force
Mara Baumgarten Force is the Associate Director of the Master of Finance Program at Tulane University. She received her BA in Political Science from Yale University and MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. Before joining the faculty at Tulane in 2017, Mara was a managing director and the Head of Private Client Trust at JPMorgan, where she was an eighteen-year veteran of the firm. Mara serves on the boards of the Jewish Federation, The Jewish Community Center, and Jewish Family Services, and is a Young Leadership Fellow at the National Committee on U.S./China Relations.
Julian H. Good Jr.
Julian’s Touro legacy is long and distinguished. His grandfather,
Louis K. Good, Sr., helped build a large portion of the current hospital’s
footprint as VP of R. P. Farnsworth construction in the 1960s; his father,
Julian H. Good, Sr., represented Touro Infirmary in health care and other
legal matters as its attorney, for many years; his uncle, Louis K. Good,
II and his cousin, Louis (Lou) K. Good, III. both served as Board Chairs,
as did his mother-in-law, Florence Schornstein.
Julian’s two daughters, Emily & Allison, and his late wife, Wendy,
were all born at Touro Infirmary, and Emily was cast in the very first
commercials for “Where Babies Come From” some twenty-five
years ago. Julian is the Founder and Principal of Good Financial Group,
and in that capacity assists clients and their advisors with individual
and business planning needs. Most often, his planning services involve
estate conservation and wealth transfer strategies, business succession
planning, qualified and non-qualified retirement plans, and retirement
accumulation and income strategies with a focus on life insurance, disability
insurance, and long-term care insurance consulting. In 2011, Julian was
President of the Million Dollar Round Table, an association of over 90,000
financial professionals worldwide. As president and a five-year member
of its executive committee, he has addressed industry associations and
meetings, life insurance companies, and related professional groups in
17 countries and published many articles in numerous financial journals
worldwide.
Stuart Kottle
Stuart Kottle is interested in joining the Touro Infirmary Board to contribute
to a dynamic group of professionals committed to assisting the hospital
administration’s mission to oversee high-quality, compassionate
healthcare in New Orleans.
Stuart is an attorney at Sher Garner Cahill Richter Klein & Hilbert,
L.L.C., where his practice focuses on commercial, government, and appellate
litigation. Stuart is also an adjunct lecturer in law at Tulane Law School,
where he teaches Advanced Appellate Advocacy. Before joining Sher Garner,
Stuart was a judicial clerk for Louisiana Supreme Court, an attorney at
two national law firms in Phoenix, Arizona, and a Fulbright scholar in
China. Stuart received his J.D. from the University of Arizona College
of Law, where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Arizona Law Review,
and B.A. in Economics and Mathematics from Brandeis University.
Kathryn Lichtenberg
Kathryn Lichtenberg (“Kathy”) is a retired regulatory lawyer
who, in her role as Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, led Entergy’s
regulatory practice before state and federal regulators until her retirement in 2017.
Kathy moved to New Orleans upon graduating cum laude from Princeton University
in 1975. She received an MSW from the Tulane School of Social Work in
1977 and graduated from Loyola University School of Law in 1983. Kathy
was a partner at Monroe and Lemann and represented healthcare as well
as utility clients (as well as other litigants) in various matters; in
the mid-1980’s Kathy also represented Hospital Corporation of America
in regulatory and legal proceedings. She joined Entergy’s Legal
Department in 1995 where her practice focused on utility regulatory matters.
For many years, she also advised Entergy management teams and executives
with respect to a wide variety of issues as they arose in a dynamic work
environment.
Kathy resides in the Warehouse District. Her husband resides at Poydras Home. Kathy has over a decade of personal experience with healthcare facilities and patient care in-home, outpatient and inpatient settings. Kathy’s connection to Touro runs deep. Her husband made remarkable progress with the encouragement of friends and family during the months he spent in the stroke rehab unit. Kathy’s parents were Holocaust survivors, and her contribution to an institution with Touro’s history would make them proud. Kathy is an avid reader and an aging but relentless student of ballet. She speaks French and conversational German.
Austin Marks
Austin Marks is managing attorney at Morris Bart LLC. He joined the firm
in 2013 and leads several departments among its 300 employees. A local
of New Orleans, he graduated from Syracuse University in 2007 with a Bachelor
of Arts in Political Economy. He started his career at New Orleans City
Park, where he fondly remembers fundraising and managing thousands of
volunteers throughout its 1300-acre campus with the keys to a 4-wheeler.
He worked in economic development for several years serving as Chief of
Staff at Greater New Orleans, Inc., wherein he oversaw business and policy
development initiatives to market New Orleans as a place to invest capital
and raise a family.
Austin, and his wife, Carrie, have three children, Sam (9), Maya (6), and
Ari (3). After work, you’ll find him at the Fly, coaching his children’s
sports teams.
He has served on several local boards and agencies throughout his career, American Red Cross – Southeast, Jewish Endowment Foundation, Jewish Federation, Isidore Newman Alumni Board, Touro Synagogue, Carrollton Boosters, Breakthrough Collaborative, NORLI, JNOLA, and 504ward.
As to joining the Touro Infirmary Board, Austin says: “I can think of no better alignment than working with a community oriented non-profit in the heart of the city that serves all New Orleanians. Touro is an integral piece of the New Orleans fabric. As LCMC increases their influence and presence locally, I am excited to have a valuable seat behind the wheel of one of its major organizations.”
Crystal D. McDonald
Crystal D. McDonald is Chief of Staff (COS) at LeBlanc and Smith, a New Orleans-based lifestyle company that creates 21st Century Southern Hospitality experiences that bring communities together to live joyful, fulfilling, and balanced lives while developing future hospitality leaders. Crystal is the Chief Executive Officer of JCM Management Group, LLC a New Orleans- based consulting firm that specializes in airport lounge and concessions development. She currently is the Joint Venture partner/owner at The Club MSY, a premium travel lounge located at the Louis Armstrong International Airport. Crystal is also the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Talent Activated (TA) a multi-industry talent and staffing agency that connects highly motivated and qualified individuals with employees to staff part-time and full-time positions. In 2015 Crystal founded Acrew, a technology based pre-employment screening platform that connected employers and job seekers using brief on demand video interviews. Originally from Houston, Crystal graduated from Dillard University with a degree in Economics and Finance and received her Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Crystal and her husband Todd McDonald live in the Lower Garden District of New Orleans where they raise three children Justice (8), Jordyn (5) and Joy (2). Crystal proudly gave birth to all of her children at the Family Birthing Center at Touro Hospital and is deeply committed to the maternal health and well-being of mothers in our community.
Thomas Mims, II, MD
I was born and raised in New Orleans. I never want to say I’m from
New Orleans because I never plan to leave the great city. I feel privileged
to provide healthcare to those residents who are brave enough to return
to help rebuild this historic city.
I specialize in Nephrology. I became a healthcare provider because my grandfather
Dr. Thomas Mims was my role model and inspired me to practice medicine,
graduating from the LSU School of Medicine in 1989 and completing my residency
at the Emory University School of Medicine in 1992 and a fellowship in
nephrology in 1994 at LSU. In addition to previously serving as medical
staff president of several local long-term acute care hospitals, I am
presently the medical director of a DaVita affiliated dialysis unit in
eastern New Orleans. I have been on the Touro medical staff since 2005.
My patients can count on me to provide extraordinary care because I believe
healthcare is a right, not a privilege.
Marcy Nathan
Marcy Nathan is Creative Director for Rouses Markets, one of the fastest growing family owned companies in the United States. She leads the grocery store’s creative, media and public relations efforts, shaping and sharing the company’s story with customers — you can see her fingerprints on everything from television commercials, to the website, to in-store branding. She also serves as Editor-in-Chief of Rouses Magazine, a bi-monthly publication that has a readership of nearly 700,000. Before crossing over to the client side in 2014, Marcy worked on Rouse’s advertising from the agency side as copywriter, producer and Creative Director. Her creativity is behind some of New Orleans’ most memorable advertising campaigns. She is a local, regional and National Addy Award winner, and has judged numerous advertising competitions. Born at Touro, where babies come from, Marcy attended Newcomb Nursery School, Isidore Newman School, Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN, and Tulane University, where she received her master’s degree in English (and a record number of parking tickets).
Julie Silbert
Julie Parelman Silbert is an attorney who practices as special counsel in the New Orleans office of Kean Miller L.L.P. She practices in the environmental law and energy litigation groups. Julie earned her B.A., summa cum laude, from Newcomb College of Tulane University. She earned her J.D., cum laude, from Tulane University Law School. Post-college, Julie was a recipient of a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship for international study and travel. She served on the Tulane Law School Moot Court Board and is a member of the Order of Barristers. She served as a Law Clerk to the Hon. Walter F. Marcus, Jr., Louisiana Supreme Court, from 1984 to 1985. Julie’s past board service includes Tulane University Hillel, the New Orleans Jewish Community Center, Jewish Family Service, and the Anti-Defamation League. She also served as a representative for Tulane Hillel to the Jewish Endowment Foundation. Julie was a member of the Lemann-Stern Young Leadership Group of the Jewish Federation of New Orleans and has served on various Social Justice Committees for Touro Synagogue. Julie and her husband Scott have two children. In her spare time, she enjoys cycling and exercise, reading, skiing and travel. Over the years, Julie and her family have experienced top-notch medical care from Touro Infirmary and its affiliated doctors.
Shea A. Soll
Shea A. Soll, a lifelong resident of New Orleans and born at Touro Infirmary, has been a leader in the healthcare community for over twenty-five years. He received his BA in Economics from the University of Colorado, Boulder and MBA from University of New Orleans. He began his career at Diagnostic Imaging Services (DIS), ascending to the Chief Executive Officer position within Tenet Healthcare’s Gulf States Region Outpatient Imaging Division. After a brief stint as Vice President of Operations for Proscan International, Shea co-founded and was CEO of Doctors Imaging from 2006 until 2019. He currently serves as Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees of Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans and has previously served on the boards of Jewish Family Service, Tulane Hillel, Anti- Defamation League and the Louisiana Children’s Museum.
Steven Yellin, M.D.
Dr. Steven Yellin has served the New Orleans community as a radiologist for over 35 years. Dr. Yellin cared for patients both in private practice and multiple hospital settings before joining the Touro Medical Staff in 2010. A graduate of LSU Medical School, Dr. Yellin completed his residency in diagnostic radiology at the Ochsner Medical Center Hospital, were he also served as Chief Resident. He is board certified by the American Board of Radiology and a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. Dr. Yellin has strong ties to the Touro community, as he was born at Touro Infirmary and served on the Touro Synagogue Board of Directors.
William Von Almen, MD, President of the Medical Staff
Dr. William Von Almen has spent his career specializing in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Touro Infirmary. After earning his medical degree from Louisiana State University School of Medicine, he completed residency at LSU School of Medicine. With over 30 years of experience, Dr. Von Almen continues his practice because of the long-lasting Doctor-Family relationships that are built in OB/GYN. Dr. Von Almen was appointed to President of the Medical Staff at Touro in 2020.